trait
[treyt; British also trey]
- a distinguishing characteristic or quality, especially of one's personal nature: bad traits of character.
- a pen or pencil stroke.
- a stroke, touch, or strain, as of some quality: a trait of pathos; a trait of ready wit.
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Origin of trait
Synonyms
See more synonyms for trait on Thesaurus.com1. peculiarity, mark, attribute, property.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for trait
Contemporary Examples
This uniqueness is a trait that she attributes to her early success as a dominatrix.
By using some sort of filter—like, perhaps, a universally understood saying—the trait is more easily conveyed.
The Royalist has always maintained that Harry's red hair is a Spencer, not a Hewitt trait.
Without delving into spoilers, what if a trait like vulnerability can also be a source of strength?
The trait was especially essential for Nathan, a straight-man character Garcia patterned after himself.
Historical Examples
It is a trait, moreover, which finds expression in almost everything he wrote.
The Man ShakespeareFrank Harris
As one trait disappeared, no other trait sprung up to take its place.
Life And Adventures Of Martin ChuzzlewitCharles Dickens
No catalogue of American qualities and defects can exclude the trait of individualism.
The American MindBliss Perry
It was this trait in my character which led to the incident I am about to tell you of.
The trait of which I am speaking, I replied, may be also seen in the dog, and is remarkable in the animal.
The RepublicPlato
trait
- a characteristic feature or quality distinguishing a particular person or thing
- rare a touch or stroke
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Word Origin
C16: from French, from Old French: a pulling, from Latin tractus, from trahere to drag
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for trait
n.
late 15c., "shot, missiles;" later "a stroke, short line" (1580s), from Middle French trait, from Latin tractus "draft, drawing, drawing out," later "line drawn, feature," from past participle stem of trahere "to pull, draw" (see tract (n.1)). Sense of "particular feature, distinguishing quality" is first recorded 1752, from meaning "line, streak, feature" (1560s), which is common to English, French, and Latin.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
trait
(trāt)- A genetically determined structure, attribute, or function.
- A distinct pattern of behavior.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
trait
[trāt]
- A genetically determined characteristic or condition. Traits may be physical, such as hair color or leaf shape, or they may be behavioral, such as nesting in birds and burrowing in rodents. Traits typically result from the combined action of several genes, though some traits are expressed by a single gene.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.